As one of the most successful players in history, Rafael Nadal cuts a ruthless figure on court, dismantling opponents with the kind of vim and vigour that might have made him a successful gladiator in Roman times.
Off court, the Spaniard is softly spoken, thoughtful and passionate, so much so that even as he prepared for the defence of his Monte Carlo Masters title, which he has won for eight straight years, he revealed how much he had enjoyed Andy Murray's victories at last summer's Olympics and US Open.
Nadal is back after a month off to protect his ailing left knee, having won three of his four titles since returning from a seven-month absence, including in Indian Wells, where he beat Roger Federer, Tomas Berdych and Juan Martin Del Potro.
His knee injury kept him out of the Olympics, the US Open and the Australian Open but despite his personal disappointment, Nadal said he had been delighted to see Murray finally become a major champion.
"I was emotional when Andy won the Olympics [because] he deserved to win something like this," Nadal said yesterday. "Then he won the US Open. "A long time ago, I said he would win a grand slam, so finally he did and I am happy. I know how much he fought to be there. When somebody deserves something, I am emotional."
Nadal and Monte Carlo is a love affair that began 10 years ago when, as a 16-year-old, he qualified for the main draw and beat the then French Open champion Albert Costa before bowing out to Argentina's Guillermo Coria in the third round.
Since then, he has lost just six sets in total here and only one since 2009, becoming the first man to win the same tournament in eight consecutive years. On clay, Nadal has always been the king but in Monte Carlo, providing his knee holds out, he is the emperor supreme.
"I have to take care about my body today and that's it," he said. "I have to be careful about the knee and about the rest of the things, too, because, after seven months without playing and practising, I need time.
"But I am happy to be back on the Tour and I want to enjoy every day the chance to work hard, to be back on the best feeling possible – talking about the knee every day is not helping me."
"A lot of big emotions have happened for me here in the past, but this year is probably more special because I had a really tough year.
"Just to be back and playing in these places is fantastic. I don't feel the pressure that I felt in these past years because I know that after all that happened the normal thing [would not be] to repeat all of this.
"But I'm going to try to be competitive and try to give myself the chance to play well and to fight for important things."
Murray takes on France's Edouard Roger-Vasselin in his opening match tomorrow while world No.1 Novak Djokovic will decide today if it is worth risking the ankle he injured on Davis Cup duty 10 days ago.
Dunblane's Jamie Murray, meanwhile, climbed 20 places to No.64 in yesterday's new world doubles rankings after winning the US Claycourt title with his Australian partner John Peers in Houston on Saturday.
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